By Steve Yeaton
“Her absence is like the sky, spread over everything,” C.S. Lewis writes in A Grief Observed about the death of his wife, Joy. Any person who has suffered the loss of one dearly loved knows exactly what Lewis is talking about. The pain of the beloved’s absence is felt in every corner of the life of the one left behind. That’s true even for those whose relationship with the deceased was a healthy one without regret. Even then, the grief of separation is heavy. At times, unbearable.
What about when death comes when a relationship is broken? When the last words spoken were words of anger, deceit, or betrayal? What about when death comes before a relationship can be reconciled? The absence of the one who died is not merely a sky, spread over everything. It is an angry sky, a dark sky, a tumultuous sky, devastating everything. When death ensures the last note of a relationship is a discordant one, it shatters any hope for harmony in the heart still beating.
The Last Time He Saw Jesus
That promised to be the case for Peter’s heart when Christ died. Forever, it seemed, Peter would be haunted by the last time he saw Jesus. Or, really, the last time Jesus saw him. Looked at him. This last look destined to forever trump the look in Jesus’ eyes when Peter confessed, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God” (Matthew 16:16, New Life Version). How happy Jesus was with Peter then, “I tell you that you are Peter. On this rock I will build My church” (Matthew 16:18).
That look is a million miles away from the final look Peter saw in Jesus’ eyes. “At once, while he was talking, a rooster crowed. The Lord turned and looked at Peter. He remembered the Lord had said, ‘Before a rooster crows, you will say three times that you do not know Me’” (Luke 22:60-61.
In Christ’s last hours, Peter’s bold confession gives way to cowardly denials. In Christ’s hour of need, Peter’s promise of undying devotion proves hollow. In Christ’s death, it’s not Nearer My God to Thee for Peter, it’s how far from God can I get? In his denials, Peter gets far, but not so far he can escape Jesus’ last look at him. That moment threatens to define Peter for the rest of his life.
There’s no condemnation like self-condemnation. Forever Peter will despise what he sees in the mirror. Coward. Weak. Undependable. Backstabber. What a friend Peter had in Jesus. In the end, Jesus could not say the same for Peter. No wonder, after that look, Peter “wept bitterly” (Luke 22:62, New International Version). And nothing, after Jesus’ body is sealed in the tomb, will ever stop the flow of Peter’s bitter tears.
Or so it seemed.
A Hint of Hope
The announcement of an empty tomb hints at the hope available for the broken like Peter. The hint of hope is in the words of the angel to the women at the empty tomb. After declaring Jesus is risen, the angel says to them, “Now go and tell his disciples, including Peter, that Jesus is going ahead of you to Galilee” (Mark 16:7, New Living Translation).
The angel’s words breathe hope into a deflated heart because they echo the first words of God after the betrayal of Adam and Eve. God’s first words toward his fallen creation are not words of condemnation. Instead, they are words of rescue. “Then the Lord God called to the man, ‘Where are you?’” (Genesis 3:9). The angel’s words at the empty tomb offer the same hope of rescue for the likes of Peter. The angel could have said, “Now go and tell his disciples, except Peter, that Jesus is going ahead of you to Galilee.” That’s what Peter deserved. That’s what we all deserve. Every sinner. For in our sin, we betray, we deny, we run away from our Creator.
But didn’t Jesus’ death fix all of that? Didn’t Jesus say about his impending death, “This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins” (Matthew 26:28, NIV)? Yes, he did say that. No bigger promise of rescue has ever been made to those needing rescuing.
However, Jesus’ declaration of forgiveness through his spilled blood is an empty one as long as he remains in the tomb. There’s a reason the disposition of the apostles following Jesus’ death is not one of hope but of despair. Peter does not weep alone. For Peter is not alone in his betrayal. For on the same night Peter denied Jesus three times, so, too, “all the disciples deserted him and fled” (Matthew 26:56, NLT).
Luke tells us that, upon hearing the news relayed by the women, “Peter jumped up and ran to the tomb to look. Stooping, he peered in and saw the empty linen wrappings; then he went home again, wondering what had happened” (Luke 24:12). Not only must he have wondered what happened to Jesus’ body, but, if he did indeed rise, “What does this mean?” And, more personally, “What does this mean for me?”
If he is risen, will Jesus want anything to do with Peter? If Jesus does forgive him, will that be all he does for Peter? Did Peter’s failure permanently disqualify him for service in Christ’s kingdom? If these are the kinds of questions that troubled Peter’s soul, he’s not alone. Who hasn’t wondered in the aftermath of betrayal against the one who died for us, “Is there any hope for me? Does my sin render me useless in the kingdom of God? Even if he forgives me, will he keep me permanently at arm’s length?”
From Estrangement to Reconciliation
For those who know Peter’s anguish, return again to that post-resurrection breakfast Peter shared with Jesus in John 21. Return, especially, to their conversation. The content of that conversation reveals the promise of the resurrection for every repentant sinner. Reversal.
Because Jesus lives, estrangement is reversed into reconciliation. Yes, Peter loves Jesus. Because Jesus lives, disqualification from service is reversed into restoration to service. Yes, Peter will shepherd the sheep of his flock. Because Jesus lives, dishonor is reversed into glory. Yes, Peter’s life, and death, will yet glorify God.
Peter may be the first to experience full reversal made possible by the resurrection of Jesus Christ, but he won’t be the last. Another who experiences the same kind of reversal writes of his story, “This is a trustworthy saying, and everyone should accept it: ‘Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners’—and I am the worst of them all. But God had mercy on me so that Christ Jesus could use me as a prime example of his great patience with even the worst sinners. Then others will realize that they, too, can believe in him and receive eternal life. All honor and glory to God forever and ever! He is the eternal King, the unseen one who never dies; he alone is God. Amen” (1 Timothy 1:15-17).
Because of the resurrection, the dark clouds of every sinner’s guilt, shame, and regret part making way for the bright rays of reconciliation, renewal, and restoration to burst through. They did for Peter. But not just for Peter. For any sinner who turns, and keeps turning, to Jesus in faith.
Decades later, Peter wrote of his confidence in sharing in Christ’s glory (1 Peter 5:1). His confidence isn’t in anything he offers, but in everything Christ has accomplished. He writes as one who is at peace with his Lord. In his encouragement to church leaders, he reveals the secrets of lessons learned long before in the reversal the resurrection of Christ made possible in his life. Chief among them is the truth that glorifying Christ is not found in what we do for Christ, but in what Christ is doing in us: “In his kindness God called you to share in his eternal glory by means of Christ Jesus. So after you have suffered a little while, he will restore, support, and strengthen you, and he will place you on a firm foundation. All power to him forever! Amen” (1 Peter 5:10-11).
Reversal by the reality and power of Christ’s resurrection is still available to any person who cries out, and keeps crying out, “O God, be merciful to me, for I am a sinner” (Luke 18:13). In your sin, in your betrayal, in your denials, you may be tempted to despair all hope is lost. The resurrection assures it is not.
Steve Yeaton is senior minister with First Christian Church in Columbus, Indiana.
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